A former Nigerian Minister of Works and member of the country’s ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Adeseye Ogunlewe says age is irrelevant when citizens set out to choose their next president in 2023.
Mr Ogunlewe, a former lawmaker stated this on Wednesday when he featured on ARISE News and made a case for the national leader of the APC, Bola Tinubu to clinch Nigeria’s top job.
He was reacting to the position of a former Military Head of State Ibrahim Babangida, that Nigeria’s next president in 2023 must be individuals in their 60s.
Ogunlewe’s reaction:
“If you talk about age, maybe he (IBB) wasn’t referring to Bola Ahmed Tinubu, all the other criteria mentioned is so close to Tinubu’s description.
IBB is not saying this for the first time; when he was President, he said that the younger ones should be able to take over and even banned twenty-four leaders from participating, (but) at the end of the day, it didn’t work out.
“You have to be grounded in the politics of Nigeria, I agree…you have to meet the description: knowledgeable (yes), you must know people…who knows people in Nigeria more than Bola Ahmed Tinubu?;
You must be well-educated, he is grounded and well-educated.
“Age is not on his side, but on the balance, I think he has 80% of the description of IBB. You cannot restrict age in politics.
“It is a perception, that is your own view..(that) I wish a younger person (to be) but the battle is not for age. The battle for the Presidency of Nigeria is not easy at all.
“(For) what it takes to be a candidate and win election to become President of Nigeria, AGE IS IRRELEVANT.”
